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Study Abroad at the University of Auckland, New Zealand

Combine an unforgettable travel experience with studying at a top-100 ranked university. We are New Zealand’s leading university and offer world-class facilities, excellent teaching and a friendly and supportive learning environment.

In our Study Abroad program, choose from more than 120 subjects to earn credits for your major or explore new areas including disciplines not offered at your home university. Subjects popular with our Study Abroad students include Anthropology, Māori/Pacific Studies, Wine Science, Marine Science, Environmental Science and Film, TV & Media Studies.

Auckland is flanked by two harbors, with stunning beaches on both coasts, beautiful islands a short ferry-ride away and lots of water-related activities. For those who prefer their feet firmly on land, Auckland offers lush subtropical forests for hiking and (dormant) volcanoes to climb. Urbanites will enjoy the city’s many cultural and sporting events, festivals, restaurants and vibrant shopping precincts.

Questions & Answers

Program Reviews

My year at UoA

I was extremely impressed with the way the study abroad office handled all the paper work and answered all my queries within 24hrs even with the time difference. This definitely made the process to get here much easier and less stressful. I was lucky enough to be given accommodation in Carlaw Park Student Village and although the accommodation is quite expensive, they put on lots of welcome events and the gym membership was included. Something the Study Abroad team should work on, is creating more chances to meet other student through social events after the international orientation.
The city itself is very different to what I'm used to back home, but I love it. There is always something to do whether its going to an art gallery, a rugby match or just going out to eat. I think more information should be given about the price differences between different countries, as I was extremely shocked to find out how expensive food was to buy here.
Although my studies were hard at first and the workload was more than I was used to, I'm now fully settled in.
I cannot commend this university highly enough. The international office is always buzzing with people and the staff are always friendly. Although I am only 2 months in to my year long stay, I feel like I have been here forever, but will never run out of amazing things to experience.
The University of Auckland has officially become my second home!

Sep 7, 2017

Yes, I recommend

Anastasia

21

Female

USA

10/10

Half a semester in and I don't want to leave

I've only been here for half of a semester, and the students as well as the faculty have been amazing. Everyone is incredibly welcoming and I've had no issues settling in and trying new things out. Being located in Auckland has opened up so many opportunities and the University has provided so many chances to take advantage of those opportunities as they are made available. Without a doubt, my life has been changed for the better, due to studying here, and I still have a full half-semester to take advantage of the opportunities that await!

Sep 6, 2017

Yes, I recommend

Jennifer

21

Female

United States

8/10

First time studying abroad

This semester was my first time studying abroad so I did not really know what to expect when I came to the University of Auckland. It did take a bit of getting used to, but now I am really enjoying my experience here. I have found the study abroad office to be a great resource; they have been very knowledgeable and have given me helpful answers to any questions regarding the university that I have had. One thing that I did not expect was that the University did not really help international students to become involved in the campus community. I came here by myself and the first few weeks of class it was quite hard to know who to talk to or how to succeed in the University environment because there wasn't really any events for me to get to know other local or international students (and lecture sizes are large so its not easy to meet people there either). However, I found a lot of different and interesting clubs here and eventually ended up making most friends through those. Another aspect of studying abroad here that I did not expect was how different the class environment is. I appreciate how much the lecturers take students into consideration through class reps and I really like that lectures are recorded and posted online right away. The city of Auckland in itself is a great urban environment (though quite expensive compared to what I'm used to). I really enjoy exploring all the cool restaurants and shops and a lot is in reasonable walking distance of the University. Overall I love the experience in Auckland and would recommend it!

How can this program be improved?

One thing that could be improved about this program is campus orientation. I found the information presented to international students to be very repetitive. Much of what was being addressed was covered in the several emails that were previously sent out. I also was quite confused about which orientation to attend as it was not really clarified if international students go to both the international orientation and a faculty orientation.
In the future, it would be nice to also see more events organized for international students to meet each other before the semester begins, that way anyone who came here alone (such as myself) would have more of a support system when classes actually start.
As a side note, while I have found University accommodation to be clean and high quality, it is quite expensive and I felt like I was presented with no other accommodation information or options but to pay more than a few hundred dollars per week to stay in University housing. For anyone coming to the UoA in the future I would highly consider looking into other housing options around central Auckland.

Sep 6, 2017

Yes, I recommend

Ruth

20

Female

New Zealand

8/10

Rewarding Study Abroad Experience in New Zealand at the University of Auckland

I have been at the University of Auckland for half of the semester and so far I am greatly enjoying my experince. The study abroad office at the Unvierust has been incredibly helpful throughout the entire study abroad process, from initial questions about the program to the application process, and throughout the semester at the University. That being said, the study abroad office does not offer that much support for connections among study abroad students, so for a student coming to study abroad at the Universty of Auckland from a home university without a larger program, connections with other students, and assimilation to the university is primarily independent. It would be helpful to have more events run by the Study abroad office to connect study abroad students and inform them of resources available to them to help them succeed at a new university. Despite this, the professors and other students at the University that I have encountered are all friendly, approachable, and caring.

I have been very impressed by the university accommodations. I live in a university apartment with three other university students and the apartment is spacious, modern, clean, and has a beautiful view of the Auckland skyline. The city of Auckland is wonderful, filled with activities and sights to see. It can be difficult to access areas outside of the city without a car but it is relatively simple to rent a car to travel or you can always befriend a kiwi with a car as well! Within the city, it is simple to get around either by foot or through simple to use public transport. Overall, I have greatly enjoyed my experience at the University of Auckland and highly recommend the program to other interested studnets.

Sep 5, 2017

Yes, I recommend

Caitly

20

Female

Auckland, NZ

8/10

My Experience at the University of Auckland

I am currently at the midway point of my study abroad experience at the University of Auckland. Below you'll find my top five relevant takeaways:

1. I have had a very pleasant experience living Carlaw Park Student Village.
2. I was surprised to learn that most extra-curricular clubs require a small membership fee (not used to this back in U.S.)
3. Great variety of group fitness classes! I have enjoyed the kickboxing class very much, the instructor is fantastic.
4. Orientation was not great- some parts were redundant as international students are encouraged to attend different orientations depending on focus of study.
5. I have met amazing people here, very excited about my diverse group of friends.

Sep 5, 2017

Yes, I recommend

Line

32

Female

Auckland, New Zealand

7/10

Long process to get here, but happy now I'm here

I'm a danish social work student, and I'm here in Auckland at University of Auckland to do one semester at Epsom Campus.

It was a long process to get here and the support was really not that good. I find that the student support are really good at sending out automatically answers and don't really replay to you as an individual with specific questions.

The university stats online and on their brochure that they guaranty accommodation for all international students, however they don't and this has been a stressful and disappointing experiences as I trusted that, also knowing that we in Denmark have the same service - with the only difference that we actually DO provide the accommodation.

The introduction only refers to young students who never has been abroad, me and several others left the introduction day as a result of the not relevant or useful information. They send you SO many emails before the semester begins, that it is more confusing than helpful. Also the most information is about city campus, they don't really share or know anything about other campuses.

Luckily the teachers are amazing, and fellow students are just as well. I love going to lessons, as the teachers are well prepared and are really well educators, as well as role models to us as future social workers. I'm so happy that I chose this university as I have learned so much and this is really a life time experience.

I would recommend people to go, but I really hope that the administrators would step up.

How can this program be improved?

The administrates really need to improve and step up. When ever a question is asked, they send you automatically answers, showing that they really did not read your question.

They send WAY to many emails, it is so confusion instead of informative - keep it simple.

The information day needs to be more specific and about introducing the studies in Auckland, and not about how to make friends and not drink and drive in the same time - oh my.
The is no information available for international students at Epsom Campus. It would be nice with a tour to know how to find your way and understand the rules of the Campus.
If your do not intend to provide accommodation for all international students - then don't say so on the web page.
When international students apply, provide specific details about that specific course. I really don't think that the person who helped me has any idea about what Epsom Campus is, an example could be that it would be nice to know that most students follow the same schedule, if I had known before hand, I would have liked to join just one group, and not 4 different as I am now.

Response from The University of Auckland

Hi Line,
Thank you for detailed feedback. We are always working to improve study abroad experience at the University of Auckland, so this information is very helpful.
We will review our email correspondence to see if there is any repetitive information and will also review our orientation session to improve the content and activity.
Regarding guaranteed accommodation, we will update our website with the disclaimer that a family room (which you needed) is excluded from guaranteed housing due to our capacity.
Thanks again and hope you are enjoying the semester.
Best wishes,
Sarah

By Amelia Hayter on September 11, 2017

Sep 5, 2017

Yes, I recommend

Lize

23

Female

België

9/10

Study abroad Auckland

The support you get from Auckland University is really good. I had no trouble with the application and everything went smoothly (on the administrative side). The university is very good located and everything is easily accessible, due to the fact that almost all the campuses are located at City. The residency were i'm staying is outstanding (Carlaw Park). It's the best investment if you look at price and quality.
Classes are really different from back home (Socrates style), but very interesting. As a person who doesnt speak English as motherlanguage, it can be hard though to follow the professors sometimes. Could be a workingpoint to make the professors more attentive to the fact there are some international students in the classroom.

Sep 4, 2017

Yes, I recommend

Erwin

27

Male

Denmark

8/10

Semester 2 at UoA

I'm currently doing my exchange program at the University of Auckland and so far the experience has been amazing. I've met tons of new and exciting people and the city has its own charme. Kiwi's are very friendly and it has been good getting to know some of them.
I'm currently taking electives on my masters and some of the courses I'm taking have really inspired me to learn more. I was kind of tired of school when I came here, and I know it's a little cliche of me to say, but this trip has really renewed my energy for when I have to go home and write my thesis.
Auckland is a beautiful city with good food and there is tons of hikes and adventures to participate in. It's expensive to live in New Zealand, so be prepared for that. However, you can get some less expensive produce from the asian supermarket in the city. Trademe is a good place to find cheap, secondhand gear if you need it.
I'm still in the process of picking my favourite memory since I'm only halfway through my stay so I'll have to get back to you on that!

Sep 4, 2017

Yes, I recommend

Andriana

10/10

Exchange to UOA

I had an amazing experience at this university! Not only was I able to learn new things but whenever there was something I didn't know, I was given sufficient support from the teachers.

It has also been a good chance for me to make new friends and new memories which I will treasure forever. Some of these memories include joining the SASS society where I was able to visit tourist sites in New Zealand such as Waiheke Island and Rangitoto.

Sep 4, 2017

Yes, I recommend

Andrea

34

Female

Auckland, New Zealand

10/10

University of Auckland - NO REGRETS!

I could write forever about my amazingly unique experience at the UoA but it comes down to these small points. As a Samoan university student the opportunity to study at the Center for Pacific Studies was priceless. To learn from professors who reflect my pacific island culture, upbringing, and core values was an absolute blessing and was such an empowering experience. Not to mention attending a university where so many of my peers are of Maori and Pacific descent. I also had the privilege of living at the brand new student housing on 55 Symonds which was modern, clean and so convenient (only a 10 minute walk from City Campus). Living in very close proximity to the K Road & Queen St was also a true blessing as it allowed for me to experience places like Aotea Square, Skytower & The Cloud. All in all it was an experience of a lifetime and I would encourage all students to participate in a study abroad program. Of course I am biased towards New Zealand now but I believe any study abroad program is worth the try.

Sep 4, 2017

Yes, I recommend

Ashley

21

Female

New Zealand

10/10

From Wellesley to University of Auckland

My home university is a private all-Women's college in the United States. I had never planned to study abroad, but upon talking to some friends, I decided that I wanted to study abroad in a place that is beautiful, academically rigorous, and spoke English. I found that the University of Auckland has one of the best psychology programs in the world, which made me apply. Thankfully I was accepted because being here has been the adventure of my life. Auckland is a safe place, and I love being able to go to school so close to the city. Have the ocean so close is also one of my favorite aspects of being here. As far as academic goes, the professors, in my experience, are great and having tutorials with tutors is also super helpful because one can practice and go over the material learned in lecture. All in all, I love being in Auckland and wish I could stay for much more time.

Sep 4, 2017

Yes, I recommend

Aly

Female

9/10

UCLA --> UoA

University of Auckland has been a great experience for me. Auckland has great weather and despite being far away from many of the natural beauties people come to NZ for, there is a lot to see in the area! Coastal trips are only a 1-2 hours drive and you can see some of NZ's beautiful beaches and tracks. The university has been welcoming, and the campus is nicely set up with tons to do in between classes. I'm enjoying all of my papers and highly recommend taking NZ Politics 107. All and all, it has been a great experience!

Sep 4, 2017

Yes, I recommend

Lauren

21

Female

Auckland

10/10

Just Do It!

Choosing to study abroad in New Zealand has easily been one of the best decisions I have ever made.

I had never travelled outside of the States prior to studying abroad, so New Zealand was my first out-of-country experience. The tall glass buildings, the water and the wharf, the diversity of people, and the iconic Sky Tower all caused me to immediately fall in love with Auckland. People (even complete strangers!) are especially friendly here, and I've never once felt like I wouldn't be able to make any friends. In fact, through the UCEAP Orientation Program, I was not only able to meet people, but I was able to become best friends with about 7 or 8 others who I know I'll stay in contact with when I go back home to California.

As far as traveling around New Zealand goes, I had two weeks before the semester at Auckland Uni began to visit the South Island- BEST decision I could've made. I and 4 other friends spontaneously planned a trip to go to Christchurch, Dunedin, Queenstown, and Milford Sound, and the trip did not disappoint. Dunedin was a very quaint city with lots of shops (and a cool Chocolate Factory that you can tour!) and things to look at, but Queenstown was the tourist-go-to spot for sure. Despite the freezing cold weather (nothing two layers of pants, a long sleeve shirt and two jackets, a beanie, gloves, and a scarf can't protect you from), we enjoyed 5 days together exploring the city (we went on the luge- look this up!). Milford Sound is an absolute MUST. I'm not a huge Lord of the Rings fan, but I LOVED this trip and would even call it a highlight of my time in NZ thus far.

My papers (aka classes) at Auckland Uni haven't been too stressful. I ended up with one engineering paper (I initially was taking two but one was cancelled last minute) and three general education (GE) papers. My advice in terms of which courses to take would be to take what you need so you don't fall behind back at your home University, but if you have the option to, lighten your course work and take a GE or two so you can really enjoy your time abroad.

On weekends, I and about 4-6 others (my good friends that I met from the UCEAP Orientation) always go on day trips around Auckland. We rent a car (driving on the left side of the road is very strange I'll admit, but if you and your friends help each other out, it's very do-able!) and travel as far 3 hours away from the city to explore beaches, waterfalls, or cool hiking trails. Even these little trips have made my time in NZ that much better.

In the end, what I've taken from my time in NZ thus far is that you need to make the most of the time you're given. I've found that it can be easy, and admittedly tempting, to want to lay in your room and watch some Netflix for awhile. BUT, in the time that you spent binge-watching your favorite show, you and your friends could have been half-way to a breathtaking beach or scenic hike outside the city, and this is something you don't want to miss out on. Studying abroad has been a huge privilege, and if you have the chance to do something like this, put yourself out there and don't think twice about it.

How can this program be improved?

I have been lucky in that everything thus far has been a very smooth process. I haven't had any huge concerns nor have I had issues that I felt didn't get resolved. At this time, no immediate concerns come to mind when I think about the program.

Sep 3, 2017

Yes, I recommend

Lara

21

Female

Auckland

9/10

University of Auckland

The UoA is a very good university with lots of interesting courses to offer. My home university has an obligatory semester abroad so I had to choose courses that are similar to my studies at home. The UoA courses are more challenging than my studies at home because you have to do several quizzes, assignments and a mid-semester test during the semester instead of one if final exam. Since I'm not used to this system, it's a bit hard in the beginning to organize yourself. It's very important to keep up with all the stuff because it's very hard to do all your tasks when you fall behind. Two of my courses had tutorials which were very helpful to exercise for the test and the exam. What I really like is that most lectures are recorded so if you miss one or if you just want to go through it again you can always do that at home and work on your own. However, I have to say that due to that high workload you don't get to travel as much as you may want to, but you can still do that after the semester or during the semester break.

Sep 3, 2017

Yes, I recommend

Lizzie

22

Female

Auckland

9/10

Great Uni Great City

Everyone's so friendly at the uni, easy to find the right people to ask for help and quick replies to emails etc. Can always find some way to have a good time with shadows bar and a bunch of cafes on campus. Easy to find your way around once you get to grips with the room numbering system. Loads of extra curric stuff if youre into that, something for everyone and all very open. I study Biology and have loved each of my papers so far, lecturers really friendly and workload not toooo bad.

Sep 3, 2017

Yes, I recommend

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About The University of Auckland

The University of Auckland is located in the heart of New Zealand's largest and most cosmopolitan city. Ranked in the world's top 100* universities, the University of Auckland has a strong research focus where students have the opportunity to learn...